Some Tips on Planning a Trip
- wanderingxinz
- May 24, 2018
- 4 min read
Updated: May 2, 2019
The key point here is :
Research, research and more research!
It might sound ironic but there's a lot of work to be done when it comes to planning a holiday. Especially if you're on a tight budget.
First and foremost, what's your budget?
This is in terms of the amount of money you're willing to fork out and also the amount of days you can afford to get away for.
For my Seoul trip, I had saved up approximately 3-4k for it as I hadn't been on a holiday for 2 years. So I was ready to splurge a little in terms of my spending allowance.
Still, I sourced for the most affordable and worth it air tickets and accommodation.
Your best bet would be air tickets comparison sites. My favourite would be Skyscanner!
I've been camping on Skyscanner for the longest of time but the budget airlines prices still hovered around 400+ and that is without added on luggage etc. Either that, or the transit times were ridiculously long.
Luckily, Singapore Air was running a promo and I quickly jumped on it. It was a little pricier compared to it's competitor; $569.80 for an Economy return ticket to Seoul. However, everything is included, from on-board meals to 20kg check-in luggage. After comparing this with budget airline's price with add on, Singapore Air emerged as the winner!
So, it is important to always do your research and comparison. Budget airlines might not be the best bet as they don't include a lot of things like check in luggage. Also to check the prices on the sites itself instead of booking through Skyscanner. This is as sometimes the prices reflected are from an unknown 3rd party and I would rather not take the risk of putting my money through that.
What you think might be saving a couple of bucks, might end up costing you your entire holiday!
Next came accommodation. Which I used to laboriously check again and again different sites for the different prices. With all the different hotel prices comparison sites popping up, I found it time consuming to pit them against each other. However, I've discovered it is much simpler to check against TripAdvisor. They actually help you compare against the various comparison sites! Check out a screen grab I got from them:
See that box on the left? At one glance, you can know which site to use and book your hotel for the best price!
Personally, I prefer hotels over airbnb, just for the added security. Hence I would always go on a hunt for cheap and affordable hotels first. I would like to take this chance to recommend:
Tmark Grand Hotel Myeongdong
Activities wise, I found Klook to be a good place to get cheap entry tickets in advance. I got my Nami Island + Petite France + Garden of Morning Calm tickets with return transport from Klook! It was a very easy and fuss free process. Another similar site you can try "funtastickorea.com".
As for transport, I opted to go by public transport as Seoul's public transport is very established.
However, I failed to consider my parent's health condition. Especially, my mother. She has very bad knees from working. Seoul's subway stations are notoriously filled with stairs and long walkways. So if you are traveling with your parents, elderlies or need assistance with walking, I think it is better to opt and rent a car!
I had dismissed the idea of renting a car from the start as my brother and I only got our license late last year. We are still on probation plate! Furthermore, Seoul's driving system is the complete opposite of Singapore, with the drivers seat on the left instead. Plus, renting a car means extra expenses.
We still managed to get by through Seoul's extensive public bus services! The buses are quite tourist friendly, with a station alert system message broadcasted in 2 languages minimum, Korean and English. Some even have Mandarin!
Their public transport is quite similar to ours. However, instead of ezlink card, you can purchase a T-money card from just about any convenience store and top up there. Just look at how cute the LINE Friends T-money cards are! They have a lot of other designs too :-)
Each bus ride can range from 600-4000won, depending on the distance you've travelled. It is quite cheap and affordable.
You can pretty much get to anywhere on buses, which was a relief for my family and I. This meant we didn't need to go up and down the crazy number of stairs at the subway.
Lastly, please remember to purchase travel insurance! It's the number 1 thing people forget but I feel that it is the most important thing of all.
Perhaps it's because I worked as an admin for an Insurance agent previously. I've seen how many times travel insurance has helped the clients. I've also seen how many times clients regret and suffer when they do not get adequate travel insurance coverage. Hence, please get your travel insurance BEFORE you travel! I've literally had clients who buy the insurance right before their flight, or worst, half way in of their trip.
I got mine for about 20-30sgd per pax for a travel insurance plan with medium coverage. You can easily get a travel insurance quote and comparison online.
That's all the tips I have for now :-)
Do let me know what other topics you'd like me to write about or share with me your own tips for planning a trip! Till next time~
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